
I was aware going into this book that there were spelling inconsistencies and that they book was told from the perspective of a child. I believe that the knowledge of this particular aspect of the book enabled me to accept it and disregard it more easily. I did notice that some words were spelled differently at different times, but it was not something that deflected my appreciation of the story. Though I easily saw Lawrence's mother's real conflict, the way the author handled the voice of Lawrence enabled me to see it from another perspective, one that highlighted the mystery and rationalization of a young boy in the face of unknown mental turmoil. Lawrence seemed both innocent and shrewd, not understanding the depth or gravity of his family's problem, but knowing that he had to be the man of the family and help his mother cope with the inevitable. At one point he mentions his responsibility as the only logical solution, for if he lets go, there will truly be no one who can cope. His staunch determination was staggeringly heartrending. At once scary and humbling, looking through Lawrence's eyes I saw the hopefulness and rationalizations of a child who is clearly in the dark, yet believes he can see everything clearly. It was an odd way of seeing things, at such an oblique angle, that I found it both entrancing and horrific. At times, it was so dreadfully uncomfortable to imagine life in this 9 year old mind, complicit yet not complicit, aware yet shielded by the very guilelessness of adolescence.
I thought this was an excellent book. The tale was unexpected, and told in such a way as to render it lively while still being very serious. In fact, I believe that the light manner of the narration did something to heighten the impact of the dramatic elements of the story. In this case it was not so much as an unreliable narrator as an inexperienced one, making sense of the story in the only capacity that he could. While things are stark for the reader, the main character remains in a state of innocence that effectively renders his inability to document an occurrence in the horrible worldly way we are familiar with, and in the end paints a picture of anguish in an elegant way. This is an unusual book, but one well worth the effort.
1 comments:
Excellent review! It really piqued my interest in the book.
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